Computer-implemented personal information manager method and system

ABSTRACT

A computer-implemented method for mortality tracking. The method includes electronically receiving contact information of a beneficiary of a life insurance policy. The method also includes electronically receiving a unique identifier of the policyholder of the life insurance policy. The method further includes periodically electronically searching mortality database records to obtain a periodic mortality search result. Upon occurrence of an aperiodic triggering event, the method may further aperiodically electronically search the mortality database records for the unique identifier of the policyholder to obtain an aperiodic mortality search result. The method may include verifying the deceased status of the policyholder upon occurrence of an indication that the policyholder being deceased according to the periodic mortality search result. The method further includes transmitting a deceased status notification to the beneficiary of the life insurance policy based on the policyholder being deceased according to the periodic or the aperiodic mortality search result.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.12/955,286 filed Nov. 29, 2010, and issued Nov. 13, 2012 as U.S. Pat.No. 8,311,951, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.11/203,695 filed Aug. 15, 2005, and issued Dec. 28, 2010 as U.S. Pat.No. 7,860,805, the disclosures of which are incorporated in theirentirety by reference herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

One aspect of the present invention relates to a computer-implementedpersonal information manager method and system.

BACKGROUND

Mismanagement of personal estates may result in the loss of assets toindividuals and their beneficiaries. The term beneficiaries can referto, but is not limited to, beneficiaries, devises, joint tenants and/orheirs. Currently, many banks, financial institutions, and insurancecompanies retain hundreds of billions of dollars in unclaimed assets.According to recent estimates, the proceeds of one in four lifeinsurance policies remain unclaimed, and about sixteen (16) billiondollars of matured United States savings bonds remain unclaimed. Theseand other investments often remain unclaimed because the beneficiariesof a deceased benefactor are unaware of the death and/or of theexistence of the investment.

Systems, in some instances, computer-implemented systems, exist fortracking the mortality of individuals and notifying beneficiaries of thedeath of the benefactor. In certain regards, mortality tracking involvesdetermining mortality information, i.e. whether an individual is aliveor deceased. However, these systems can be error prone since the dataused for tracking is often unreliable. Moreover, these systems oftenpassively track the mortality of individuals. Consequently, themortality information is gathered in an untimely and inefficient manner.

Further, the problems of managing an estate are often complicated by thecurrent trend of retired individuals to live part of the year in onestate and part of the year in another state. This often means that theindividual may have two sets of accounts, one in each state, two sets ofadvisers, etc. This scenario makes it harder to monitor the death of anindividual. For instance, an attorney in Michigan may check the legalnotices in Michigan to determine if a client for whom she is holding awill has died. If the client dies while wintering in Florida, the noticemay be published in Florida, but not Michigan, making it very difficultfor the attorney to hear of the death of the individual. Also, whenclose relatives of the deceased are based in one state and the deceasedlives, at least part of the time, in another state, it makes it lesslikely the close relatives have independent knowledge about the advisersthe deceased person had in the other state and assets located in theother state.

Thus, there exists a need to check a central database, e.g. the U.S.Social Security Administration mortality death index, for mortalitytracking purposes. Also, there is a need to have information accessibleon a website because a website can be accessed anywhere and theinformation can be obtained wherever it is needed.

Moreover, what is needed is a computer-implemented method and systemhaving tracking and/or notification functionality for efficiently andtimely informing an access individual of the personal information of amonitored individual. There also is a need to provide an automatedsystem for determining the mortality information of the monitoredindividual and notifying the access individual, in case of death of themonitored individual.

SUMMARY

In one embodiment, a computer-implemented method for mortality trackingis disclosed. The method includes electronically receiving contactinformation of a beneficiary of a life insurance policy. The method alsoincludes electronically receiving a unique identifier of thepolicyholder of the life insurance policy. The method further includesperiodically electronically searching mortality database records toobtain a periodic mortality search result. Upon occurrence of anaperiodic triggering event, the method aperiodically electronicallysearches the mortality database records for the unique identifier of thepolicyholder to obtain an aperiodic mortality search result. The methodfurther includes transmitting a deceased status notification to thebeneficiary of the life insurance policy based on the policyholder beingdeceased according to the periodic or the aperiodic mortality searchresult.

In another embodiment, a computer-implemented method is disclosed. Themethod includes electronically receiving contact information of abeneficiary of a life insurance policy. The method also includeselectronically receiving a unique identifier of the policyholder of thelife insurance policy. According to this embodiment, upon occurrence ofa periodic triggering event, the method includes periodicallyelectronically searching electronic mortality information for the uniqueidentifier of the policyholder to obtain a periodic mortality searchresult. Further, upon occurrence of an indication that the policyholderbeing deceased according to the periodic mortality search result, themethod verifies the deceased status of the policyholder. As a furtherstep, the method transmits a deceased status notification to thebeneficiary of the life insurance policy based on the policyholder beingdeceased according to the periodic mortality search result and theelectronic verification step.

These and other objects of the present invention will become moreapparent from a reading of the specification in conjunction with thedrawings

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1 a and 1 b depict a computer system according to one embodimentof the present invention for managing personal information;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a method for enrolling in a personal managementsystem and inputting personal information according to one embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method for conducting mortality trackingaccording to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a graphical user interface (GUI) for inputting personalinformation of a prospective user according to one embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 is a GUI for inputting access people information according to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a GUI for selecting categories of personal informationaccording to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a GUI for triggering GUIs for inputting personal informationby category according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a GUI for inputting information relating to a user's bankaccording to one embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 9 is a GUI for displaying personal information of a user accordingto one embodiment of the present invention

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosedherein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodimentsare merely exemplary of the invention that may be embodied in variousand alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale; somefeatures may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particularcomponents. Therefore, specific structural and functional detailsdisclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as arepresentative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variouslyemploy the present invention.

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments, methods and systemsof the present invention known to the inventors. However, it should beunderstood that disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of thepresent invention which may be embodied in various and alternativeforms. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not to beinterpreted as limiting, rather merely as representative bases forteaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the presentinvention.

Except where expressly indicated, all elements in this description areto be understood as modified by the word “one or more” in describing thebroadest scope of the present invention. The first definition of anacronym or other abbreviation applies to all subsequent uses herein.Further, except where expressly indicated or inapplicable, all numericalquantities are to be understood as modified by the word “about” indescribing the broadest scope of the present invention. Practice withinthe numerical limits stated may be preferred.

According to certain aspects of the present invention, acomputer-implemented system is provided so that an individual cancollect, organize, secure, track and/or manage their personalinformation. In certain embodiments, the individual can be a monitoredindividual. In certain embodiments, a system is disclosed to monitor themortality of monitored individual. Personal information can refer to anyinformation the monitored individual can use in their lives.Non-limiting examples of personal information include financial, estateand investment information. Moreover, the personal information canrelate to another individual, for example, an infant, child or elderlyparent of the individual.

In certain embodiments, other individuals can input information relatingto the monitored individual. A child can input information about aparent, who is disabled in some way. In this example, the child isacting as the agent of the parent. As another example, the monitoredindividual may be disabled in a way that makes typing difficult, e.g. anelderly person who cannot type easily due to arthritis or impairmentfrom a stroke. In these cases, the monitored individual may designatesomeone to help him or her input the personal information. In anotherembodiment, an agent can receive the personal information of themonitored individual by phone, fax, mail, e-mail and enter thatinformation using computers under control of an entity. This agent couldbe an employee, independent contractor or owner of the entity.

The system of certain embodiments of the present invention can beutilized to secure personal information of the monitored individual in acentral location. The system can also include functionality to notifyanother individual of the personal information of the monitoredindividual. In certain embodiments, this individual is an accessindividual. The access individual can be any individual selected by themonitored individual to receive personal information upon the occurrenceof a certain event. Non-limiting examples of access individuals includebeneficiaries, devises, heirs, assigns, joint tenants, relatives, closefriends of the monitored individual and advisors of the monitoredindividual. In certain embodiments, the access individual can be abeneficiary of the monitored individual who is acting in the capacity ofa benefactor.

The system can be partially or completely computer-implemented, and canbe online, offline, or a blend thereof. The system can be embodied instand-alone computer software or a number of graphical user interfaces(GUIs). The system can include the participation of individuals, forexample, a personal estate manager, for supporting and maintainingdifferent aspects of the system. According to one aspect of the presentinvention, the monitored individual can identify one or more accessindividuals, sometimes referred to as access people, to receive at leastsome, if not all of, the monitored individual's personal informationupon the occurrence of an event, for example, death or incapacity of themonitored individual. The system can also notify the monitoredindividuals of important dates, for example, maturity dates, of assetsand other personal items. The system also has the capability ofmortality tracking, and in certain embodiments, automatic and/orcontinuous mortality tracking, of the monitored individuals so that theaccess individuals can be notified of death in a timely manner. Itshould be understood that mortality tracking can also be conducted on anintermittent basis, for example, checking a mortality database regularlywith short intervals between succession tracking.

FIG. 1 a depicts computer system 10 according to one embodiment of thepresent invention for managing personal information. System 10 can bereferred to as a personal estate manager system. Client computer 12 canbe a personal computer, for example, a desktop or notebook computer.Client computer 12 can be stand-alone or part of a computer network,depending on the implementation of the present invention. Clientcomputer 12 and server computer 18 can be connected to a computernetwork, for example a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network(WAN), through a variety of interfaces, including, but not limited todial-in connections, cable modems, high-speed lines, and hybridsthereof. According to FIG. 1 a, client computer 12 can be connected toserver computer 18 through communication lines 22 and 24 and Internet20.

Server computer 18 can be a database server, an application server, aweb server, a directory server, a mail server, and/or hybrids thereof.It will be apparent that the type of server computer 18 depends on thenature and implementation of computer system 10.

According to the embodiment depicted in FIG. 1 a, client computer 12 andserver computer 18 support TCP/IP protocol which has input and accesscapabilities via two-way communication lines 22 and 24. Anothernon-limiting example of supportable protocol is voice over Internetprotocol, otherwise referred to as VOIP. Communication line 22 is anintranet-adaptable communication line, for example, a dedicated line, asatellite link, an Ethernet link, a public telephone network, a privatetelephone network, and hybrids thereof. Communication line 24 isadaptable to connect to the Internet 20. Examples of suitablecommunication lines include, but are not limited to, public telephonenetworks, public cable networks, and hybrids thereof. It is understoodthat communication lines 22 and 24 can be purely Internet-adaptable orintranet-adaptable or hybrids thereof. For example, communication line22 can include an Internet-adaptable portion and an intranet-adaptableportion. In certain embodiments, firewalls (not shown) can be situatedbetween client computer 12 and Internet 20 and server computer 18 andInternet 20 for security purposes.

Entity computer 14 can be a computer interconnected to a number ofaffiliated computers 16. Entity computer 14 can be designed to be usedby an entity. In certain circumstances, the entity is a financialservices entity. Entity computer 14 can be used by an estate planningattorney. Entity computer 14 can be configured to display one or moreGUIs and/or install and execute software for implementing embodiments ofthe present invention. In one embodiment, a monitored individual, usingaffiliated computer 16, can access entity computer 14 and input personalinformation through entity computer 14. In this embodiment, from thepoint of view of the monitored individual, entity computer 14 functionsas a server computer. If an entity installs a software package enablingit to have a stand-alone system, then entity computer 14 may not operateas a server computer. In certain embodiments, entity computer 14 isaccessible only by the clients of the entity and those working for theentity (e.g. an owner, an employee, an independent contractor hired bythe entity). Access to entity computer 14 can be controlled by theentity. In other embodiments, an agent of the entity (i.e., an owner,employee or independent contractor) can input the personal informationof the monitored individual using affiliated computer 16. Theinformation can be received by the agent of the entity eitherelectronically, by mail, by phone, by fax, by personal interview, etc.In certain embodiments, an individual can enter information abouthimself or herself or about another individual such as a parent,dependent child, etc. This method may contemplate using a home orpersonal computer as opposed to an entity computer. A software productenables an individual to use a stand-alone system without a servercomputer hosting one or more GUIs for display on computers 12, 14 and/or16.

Entity computer 14 and server computer 18 can support TCP/IP protocolwhich has input and access capabilities via two-way communication lines26 and 28. Communication line 28 is an intranet-adaptable communicationline, for example, a dedicated line, a satellite link, an Ethernet link,a public telephone network, a private telephone network, and hybridsthereof. Communication line 26 is adaptable to connect to the Internet20. According to certain embodiments of the present invention, entitycomputer 14 can function as server 18.

Server computer 18 can serve a number of GUIs, through personal estatemodule 19 which can be accessed and displayed by client computer 12,entity computer 14, and/or affiliated computers 16. The GUIs can be usedby the users to input personal estate information. This data istransmitted by computers 12, 14 and 16 to server computer 18 andreceived by server computer 18. In certain embodiments, the datatransmitted through communication lines 22, 24, 26 and 28 is encrypted,for example, 128-bit encryption, to enhance the security of the system.

The received data can be transmitted through communication line 30 todedicated computer 32. In certain embodiments, communication line 30 isa dedicated private line. Dedicated computer 32 includes data storagedevice 40, storage module 42 for storing data, and retrieval module 44for retrieving stored data. Data storage device 40 can be a computerdatabase. In certain embodiments, identity theft indicators are notstored in data storage device 40. As such, these indicators are notaccessible through the Internet since the indicators are not stored in adatabase connected to the Internet. Other personal estate informationcan be stored to data storage device 40. This information is not usefulto computer hackers because the identity theft indicators are not tiedto the rest of the personal estate information. Non-limiting examples ofidentity theft indicators include social security numbers, driver'slicense numbers, account numbers, user name, user address, and userphone numbers.

The identify theft indicators, along with the rest of the personalinformation of the monitored individual, are transmitted and stored toportable storage device 46, through communication line 48. Non-limitingexamples of portable storage device 46 include external hard drives,compact discs, flash memory storage devices, and internal hard drives ofa stand-alone computer.

The personal information stored in portable storage device 46 can betransmitted to backup computer 50. In certain embodiments, this transferis conducted offline for security purposes, as signified by dottedcommutation line 52. Backup computer 50 includes data storage device 54,storage module 56 for storing data, and retrieval module 58 forretrieving stored data. Data storage device 54 can be a computerdatabase.

In certain embodiments of the present invention, system 10 includesfunctionality to execute mortality tracking, as depicted in FIG. 1 b.User computer 57 can receive an e-mail address of a user who inputs theinformation into a GUI hosted by server computer 18. In certainembodiments, user computer 57 can be computers 12, 14 and/or 16. Oncethis information is received by server computer 18, control of themortality tracking system can be transferred to secure server computer59. Computer 59 can check to make sure that the user's e-mail addressmatches the one on a pre-existing user account. Computer 59 can host aGUI to prompt the user to enter a unique identifier, for example, asocial security number. The user's social security number is onlyaccessible on secure server computer 59 and is indexed by the user'se-mail address on server computer 18. If a hacker obtains access toserver computer 18, the hacker can only see the e-mail address and doesnot have the indicators needed to steal a user's identity.

The unique identifier can be downloaded to tracking computer 60.Tracking computer 60 can be a computer that conducts mortality trackingand reports the results to another computer or to an entity. The e-mailaddress can operate as a user's account number. Tracking computer 60 canbe offline for security purposes. Tracking computer 60 can includemortality database 62 or access a mortality database. It should beunderstood that mortality database can refer to any database whichpertains to either (1) deceased individuals or (2) both living anddeceased individuals and/or contains a designator which specifieswhether an individual is alive or deceased. Mortality database 62 can bethe United States Social Security Administration (U.S.S.S.A.) deathindex master file (otherwise referred to as the D.M.F.). Another exampleof a mortality database is a U.S. state online database of deathcertificates. The database may contain a number of data records, eachtypically having a social security number field of a deceasedindividual. Another example of a mortality database is a databasegenerated by a private entity that extracts information from theU.S.S.S.A. D.M.F. to generate their own database, for example, theLoislaw subscriber database.

Tracking computer 60 can also include searching and matching module 64for searching mortality data records and matching those records with theunique identifier information. It should be understood that thesearching and matching can be done manually. The searching and matchingmodule can output an indicator for indicating whether the result of thesearch was returned positive (i.e. a match was found) or negative (i.e.no match). In other words, a positive result means that the mortalitydatabase indicated the individual is deceased and a negative matchindicates that the individual is alive. This indicator can betransmitted by tracking computer 60, through Internet 20 to servercomputer 18. Server computer 18 or tracking computer 60 can havefunctionality for notifying the access individual of the search results.

The system configuration depicted in FIG. 1 a is but one example of manyembodiments of the present invention. As another example, entitycomputer 14 can function as a server computer for serving affiliatedcomputers 16 with a number of GUIs to implement certain features of thepresent invention. Moreover, entity computer 14 and/or affiliatedcomputer 16 and/or client computer 12 can be outfitted with computersoftware embodying aspects of the present invention. In the latterexample, a computer network may or may not be needed.

FIG. 2 is flowchart 62 of a method according to one embodiment of thepresent invention that can be implemented using computer system 10. Itshould be understood that elements of flowchart 62 can be modified,rearranged, and/or omitted according to different implementations of thepresent invention.

According to block 64, a user inputs personal information. The user canutilize client computer 12 and/or affiliated computer 16, which candisplay a GUI, for inputting personal information. In other embodiments,entity computer 14 can be used to input personal information.Alternatively, a software package can be installed on computer 12, 14and/or 16 to facilitate input of personal information. In certainembodiments, an individual can enter information about himself orherself or about another individual such as a parent, dependent child,etc. This method may contemplate using a home or personal computer asopposed to an entity computer. A software product enables an individualto use the personal system as a stand-alone system without using awebsite.

Advantageously, the GUIs utilized throughout the process of inputting,revising and displaying personal information do not include identitytheft indicators. This feature adds another level of security to thesystems and methods of the present invention. In other embodiments, theuser can provide personal information to a personal estate manager viasnail mail, electronic mail, phone call, or facsimile. The user can usethese methods of communication for providing, updating, revising andreviewing other information, for example, personal information.

FIG. 4 is GUI 65 for inputting personal information according to oneembodiment of the present invention. GUI 64 includes data entry fields66, 68, 70, 72, 74, 76, 78, 80, 82 and 84 for inputting first name, lastname, email, password, confirmed password, address, city, zip code, homephone, and secondary phone. According to certain embodiments of thepresent invention, the user's e-mail address is used by the personalestate manager system as a user name. In certain embodiments, the userpassword must contain at least one letter, at least one number, and bebetween 6 and 13 characters in length. GUI 65 also includes drop downbox 86 for selecting a user's state of residence. Check box 88 can beselected by the user to confirm that the user has read and agreed to theterms of service. Button 90 can be selected by the user to go to thenext step in the process.

According to FIG. 2, the next step in the process is inputting accesspeople, as depicted by block 92. Access people are individuals that theuser gives different levels of access to their personal information.Non-limiting examples of access people are relatives, beneficiaries,heirs, designees, executor of the estate, a holder of power of attorney,financial advisor, trusted advisor, estate attorney and CPA. The usercan utilize client computer 12, entity computer 14 and/or affiliatecomputer 16, which can display a GUI, for inputting access peopleinformation.

For example, FIG. 5 is GUI 94 for inputting access information accordingto one embodiment of the present invention. GUI 94 includes inputsections 96, 98 and 100 for inputting information for a first, secondand third access person. It should be understood that more or less thanthree access people can be utilized according to the present invention.In certain embodiments, the user has the option of inputting between 1and 12 access people. Each input section includes data entry fields 102,103, 104, 105, 106, 108, and 110 for inputting person's name,relationship with user, phone number, e-mail address, city and zip codeand drop down box 112 for selecting a state of residence for the accessperson. Once the user completes entry of the access person information,the user can select button 114 to go to the next step in the process.

According to FIG. 2, the next step in the process is approving orrejecting the enrollment based on the inputted personal information, asdepicted in decision block 116. This step can be executed by personalestate module 19 residing on server computer 18. If the enrollment isrejected, the user is prompted again to input their personalinformation, as described above. A non-limiting example of a basis forrejecting enrollment is the use of a password that does not conform tothe character and size limitations described above. If the enrollment isapproved, the user is then prompted to input personal estateinformation, as shown in block 118.

FIG. 6 shows GUI 120 for selecting categories of personal estateinformation. Click box 122 can be selected if the user has one or morefinancial and/or legal advisors. Click box 124 can be selected if theuser has bank accounts. Click box 126 can be selected if the user hasbonds. Click box 128 can be selected if the user has one or morestockbrokers and/or brokerage firms. Click box 130 can be selected ifthe user has certificates of deposit. Click box 132 can be selected ifthe user has credit cards. Click box 134 can be selected if the user hasimportant documents. Click box 136 can be selected if the user hasfinancial instruments and/or investments. Click box 138 can be selectedif the user has one or more life insurance policies. Click box 140 canbe selected if the user has fixed monthly payments. Click box 142 can beselected if the user has mutual funds. Click box 144 can be selected ifthe user has pension funds. Click box 146 can be selected if the userhas real estate. Click box 148 can be selected if the user has one ormore safety deposit boxes. Click box 150 can be selected if the user hassecurities. Click box 152 can be selected if the user has stocks.

Once the user selects one of the click boxes, an “ADD INFO” buttonappears. For example, FIG. 7 shows a fragment of GUI 120 for selectingcategories of personal estate information and selecting the “ADD INFO”button for the identified categories. According to FIG. 7, the user hasselected the check boxes 122, 124 and 128. Consequently, “ADD INFO”buttons 154, 156 and 158 appear.

Upon selecting one of the “ADD INFO” buttons, a GUI can be displayed forinputting information about the identified category. For example, FIG. 8depicts GUI 160 for inputting information concerning a bank. GUI 160includes data entry fields 162 and 164 for inputting bank name and typeof account (e.g. checking, savings, etc.) Fragment 166 of GUI 160includes a number of check boxes for identifying the services held bythe user. According to FIG. 8, non-limiting examples of services heldinclude 401(k), annuities, bonds, CDs, checking accounts, IRAs, lifeinsurance policies, money market accounts, mortgages, mutual funds,pension funds, profit sharing accounts, savings accounts, stocks,trusts, wills estate plans, and other. Upon selecting other, the usercan input the other service in data input field 168. In certainembodiments, upon selecting a services held, the user can be prompted toinput information concerning the services held through a GUI.

GUI 160 also includes data input fields 170, 172, 174, 176 and 178 forinputting branch address, city, zip code, contact at the bank andcontact phone number. GUI 160 also includes drop down box 180 forselecting the state where the bank is located. GUI 160 also includesbutton 182 for displaying a GUI for adding information about anotherbank and button 184 for saving the information about the current bank.

Once the user has input information for one of the identified categoriesand clicked on the save info button, this information is transmitted toserver computer 18 and stored in data storage device 40. Moreover, thisinformation can be displayed when the user returns to the categoryselection GUI. For instance, FIG. 9 depicts GUI 186 for displaying inputpersonal estate information for financial and legal advisors. The userhas the opportunity to add info concerning other financial and legaladvisors by selecting button 188. The user can also edit the storedinput information by selecting hypertext 190 or 192.

At any point after inputting and saving personal estate information tothe personal estate manager system, the user can review the information,as indicated by block 192 of FIG. 2. In certain embodiments, a GUI canbe displayed which includes all the personal estate information inputand saved by the user.

Referring to FIG. 3, a process for carrying out mortality tracking isshown. It should be understood that elements of this process can bemodified, rearranged, and/or omitted according to differentimplementations of the present invention. In certain embodiments, once auser successfully enrolls in the personal estate management system andprovides a unique identifier, a mortality tracking system automaticallyand continuously tracks the mortality status of the user. The mortalitytracking system can be embodied in a computer module loaded on acomputer, for example, tracking computer 60. It should be understoodthat the mortality tracking system can also be implemented by a personalestate manager who compares paper records to obtain a mortality match.

Flowchart 194 begins with the receipt of a unique identifier, asdepicted in block 196. The unique identifier can be received via phonecall, facsimile, electronic mail, and/or snail mail. Moreover, theunique identifier can be received through a GUI. Further, the uniqueidentifier can be transmitted directly to a secure server computer,without being transmitted through dedicated computer 32. The uniqueidentifier can also be obtained by checking a database, for example, acredit bureau report, that cross-indexes social security numbers with anindividual's home, address, etc. As another non-limiting example, whenpaired with the code of an issuing state or code for the issuing state,a driver's license number can be a unique identifier. The uniqueidentifier can be written into a paper record maintained by a personalestate manager. Alternatively, the unique identifier can be stored in anoffline database, not accessible through the Internet. In certainembodiments, the unique identifier is a social security number. Othernon-limiting examples of unique identifiers include dental records,retinal records, finger prints, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or otherunique trait, trace, or characteristic of an individual. Another exampleof a unique identifier is a national identity number, such as a passportnumber. According to block 198, after receipt of the unique identifier,this value can be compared with mortality database 62 having a number ofmortality records. A non-limiting example of a mortality database is theUnited States Social Security Administration mortality database. Eachmortality record can include a deceased individual's unique identifierand possibly other information concerning the individual.

If the received unique identifier matches a deceased individual's uniqueidentifier, then the mortality tracking system verifies the death, asdepicted in decision block 200 and block 204. The death can be verifiedby checking the U.S. Social Security Administration death records.Verification can also be obtained through county morgue records, funeralhome records, hospital records, and/or obituaries. Verifying death canalso include checking state and county records of death certificates.Once a match is obtained and verified, a report can be generated toalert the personal estate manager of the match. Once the death isverified, the mortality tracking system notifies the access people ofthe death, as depicted in block 202. In certain embodiments, the systemtransmits an e-mail to server computer 18, which triggers thenotification process.

If there is no match, then the mortality tracking system carries out thecomparing step continuously until a match is obtained, as depicted indecision block 200 and block 198. In certain embodiments, the mortalitytracking module of tracking computer 60 continuously compares the user'sunique identifier with current data in the mortality database. In otherembodiments, the comparing step is executed intermittently, for exampleonce an hour, day, or week.

In certain embodiments, the mortality tracking system also includesfunctionality to transmit e-mail reminders to monitored individuals andto utilize a failure to respond as a trigger for contacting the accessindividual to notify them to contact the monitored individual andconfirm that the monitored individual is alive. This functionalityallows the mortality tracking system to send out a periodic e-mailreminder to the monitored individual. If the monitored individual doesnot respond to the e-mail reminder within a certain period of time,mortality searching for this specific individual can be initiated.

Moreover, the mortality tracking system can include a triggering featurein which mortality searching occurs after receipt of a mortalityindicator, for example, return mail, an unpaid invoice, or inactivity ofan investment account. In these cases, there is an indication that thenon-responsiveness is due to death or disability. For example, anentity, e.g. a financial services company, sends an invoice or statementof account to a monitored individual, which is returned asundeliverable. The financial services company can use the undeliverablemail return as a trigger for contacting the access people and/orinitiating a mortality search. Another example of a triggering event canbe a missed meeting with a representative of the financial servicescompany followed by the inability to contact the monitored individual.As another example, the financial services company can monitor itsaccounts for activity. According to embodiments of the presentinvention, mortality searching can be triggered if there is no activityfor a certain number of days. The monitoring of the account activity canbe accomplished through a search of, an entity's, e.g. a financialservice company's, database conducted on a regular interval, forexample, weekly or monthly. If there is no activity for the prescribedperiod, then the company can conduct a mortality search for themonitored individual.

The access people can also receive information about the deceased user'spersonal estate. The information received by the access person can bebased on their status. For example, a beneficiary can receiveinformation about the deceased user's assets. Depending on the personalestate information input and stored in the personal estate managersystem, the beneficiary notification can include, but is not limited to,information concerning life insurance policies, safety deposit boxes,401(k)'s, accounts established under section 125 of the U.S. InternalRevenue Code, I.R.A.s, saving accounts, checking accounts, creditunions, stocks, property real estate holdings, pension functions, creditcards, mortgage policies, group life insurance policies, accident andhealth payments and policies, S.S.A. benefits, V.A. death benefits,disability benefits, mineral royalties, unpaid wage and benefits,pension funds, profit sharing, severance pay, unused vacation pay, sickpay, employee savings, medical accounts, flexible spending accounts,refunds from property taxes, uncashed interest and dividends, sharesresulting from stock splits, trust, estate, financial planners,misplaced certificates, matured bearer and registered bonds, unredeemedsavings bonds, unredeemed government securities, U.S. savings bonds,government bonds, unexchanged shares from mergers, and/or called bonds.

As another non-limiting example of the use of personal information, thepersonal estate manager system can also notify the user of importantdates, for example, maturity dates, of assets and other personal items.The reminder notification can be sent via electronic mail, post card,letter, phone, facsimile and/or newsletter. Non-limiting examples ofassets and/or items subject to the reminder notification include savingsbonds maturity, traveler's checks, gift certificates, annual billings,certificate of deposit maturity, small child accounts, college accountpersonal and state funds, club and lay aways, credit balances fromloans, cashier checks, money orders, stock dividends, bond coupons,refunds, foreign exchange drafts, unrefunded deposits, utilities,landlord, rental companies, credit cards and debit cards, unused airlinemiles, passport renewals, concealed weapons permit, renewals, clubmembership, real estate license, prescription renewal, medical proxy,birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, and/or medical reminders.

According to certain embodiments of the present invention, a system isdisclosed having the capability to allow users to store and manageinformation regarding warranties. Non-limiting examples of warrantiesinclude car, appliance, jewelry and electronics warranties.

According to certain embodiments of the present invention, a system isdisclosed having the capability to allow users to store and retrievewallet information, for example information relating to credit cards,debit cards, A.T.M.'s, membership cards and driver license numbers.

According to certain embodiments of the present invention, a system isdisclosed having the capability to allow user to upload and storepersonal documents as another non-limiting form of personal information.Non-limiting examples of personal documents include real estatedocuments, insurance policies, tax returns, stock certificates, bondcertificates, wills and estate plans.

Those of skill will further appreciate that the various illustrativelogical blocks, modules, and algorithm steps described in connectionwith the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented as electronichardware, computer software, or combinations of both. To clearlyillustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, variousillustrative components, blocks, modules, and steps have been describedabove generally in terms of their functionality. Whether suchfunctionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon theparticular application and design constraints imposed on the overallsystem. Skilled persons can implement the described functionality invarying ways for each particular application, but such implementationdecisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from thescope of the present invention.

The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, as described inconnection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented orperformed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor(DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device,discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or anycombination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein.A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor, but in thealternative, the processor can be any processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor can also be implemented as acombination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSPand a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or moremicroprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other suchconfiguration.

The steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with theembodiments disclosed herein can be embodied directly in hardware, in asoftware module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two.A software module can reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory,EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, aCD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium. An exemplary storage mediumcan be coupled to the processor such that the processor can readinformation from, and write information to, the storage medium. In thealternative, the storage medium can be integral to the processor. Theprocessor and the storage medium can reside in an ASIC.

The above description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enableany person skilled in the art to make or use the invention. Variousmodifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to thoseskilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein can beapplied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scopeof the invention. Thus, the invention is not intended to be limited tothe embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scopeconsistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

While exemplary embodiments are described above, it is not intended thatthese embodiments describe all possible forms of the invention. Rather,the words used in the specification are words of description rather thanlimitation, and it is understood that various changes may be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.Additionally, the features of various implementing embodiments may becombined to form further embodiments of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:electronically receiving contact information of a beneficiary of a lifeinsurance policy; electronically receiving a unique identifier of thepolicyholder of the life insurance policy; periodically electronicallysearching mortality database records to obtain a periodic mortalitysearch result; receiving an aperiodic trigger based on an aperiodictriggering event; upon receipt of the aperiodic trigger, aperiodicallyelectronically searching the mortality database records for the uniqueidentifier of the policyholder to obtain an aperiodic mortality searchresult; and transmitting a deceased status notification to thebeneficiary of the life insurance policy based on the policyholder beingdeceased according to the periodic or the aperiodic mortality searchresult.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the beneficiary contactinformation includes the mailing address of the beneficiary.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the beneficiary contact information includesthe phone number of the beneficiary.
 4. The method of claim 1, whereinthe beneficiary contact information includes the email address of thebeneficiary.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the mortality databaserecords are selected from one or more mortality databases.
 6. The methodof claim 5, wherein one of the one or more mortality databases is theUnited States Social Security Administration death index master file. 7.The method of claim 1, wherein the unique identifier is a socialsecurity number.
 8. A computer-implemented system comprising at leastone tracking computer configured to: electronically receive contactinformation of a beneficiary of a life insurance policy; electronicallyreceive a unique identifier of the policyholder of the life insurancepolicy; periodically electronically search at least some of the recordsof one or more mortality databases to obtain a periodic mortality searchresult; receiving an aperiodic trigger based on an aperiodic triggeringevent; upon receipt of the aperiodic trigger, aperiodicallyelectronically search at least some of the records of the one or moremortality databases for the unique identifier of the policyholder toobtain an aperiodic mortality search result; and transmit a deceasedstatus notification to the beneficiary of the life insurance policybased on the policyholder being deceased according to the periodic orthe aperiodic mortality search result.
 9. The system of claim 8, whereinthe beneficiary contact information includes the mailing address of thebeneficiary.
 10. The system of claim 8, wherein the beneficiary contactinformation includes the phone number of the beneficiary.
 11. The systemof claim 8, wherein the beneficiary contact information includes theemail address of the beneficiary.
 12. The system of claim 8, wherein theone or more mortality databases includes a centralized mortalitydatabase.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the centralized mortalitydatabase includes the United States Social Security Administration deathindex master file.
 14. The system of claim 8, wherein the uniqueidentifier is a social security number.
 15. A computer-implementedmethod comprising: electronically receiving a unique identifier of thepolicyholder of the life insurance policy having a beneficiary;periodically electronically searching the records of a mortalitydatabase to obtain a periodic mortality search result; receiving anaperiodic trigger based on an aperiodic triggering event; upon receiptof the aperiodic trigger, aperiodically electronically searching themortality database records for the unique identifier of the policyholderto obtain an aperiodic mortality search result; and transmitting adeceased status notification to the beneficiary of the life insurancepolicy based on the policyholder being deceased according to theperiodic or the aperiodic mortality search result.
 16. The method ofclaim 15, wherein the mortality database includes a centralizedmortality database.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the centralizedmortality database includes the Social Security Death Index (S.S.D.I.).18. The method of claim 15, wherein the unique identifier is a socialsecurity number.
 19. A computer-implemented method comprising:electronically receiving contact information of a beneficiary of a lifeinsurance policy; electronically receiving a unique identifier of thepolicyholder of the life insurance policy; receiving a periodic triggerbased on a periodic triggering event; upon receipt of the periodictrigger, periodically electronically searching electronic mortalityinformation for the unique identifier of the policyholder to obtain aperiodic mortality search result; receiving a mortality indication thatthe policyholder is deceased according to the periodic mortality searchresult; upon receipt of the mortality indication, verifying the deceasedstatus of the policyholder; and transmitting a deceased statusnotification to the beneficiary of the life insurance policy based onthe policyholder being deceased according to the periodic mortalitysearch result and the electronic verification step.
 20. Acomputer-implemented system comprising at least one tracking computerconfigured to: electronically receive contact information of abeneficiary of a life insurance policy; electronically receive a uniqueidentifier of the policyholder of the life insurance policy; receiving aperiodic trigger based on a periodic triggering event; upon receipt ofthe periodic trigger, periodically electronically search electronicmortality information for the unique identifier of the policyholder toobtain a periodic mortality search result; receiving a mortalityindication that the policyholder is deceased according to the periodicmortality search result; upon receipt of the mortality indication,verify the deceased status of the policyholder; and transmit a deceasedstatus notification to the beneficiary of the life insurance policybased on the policyholder being deceased according to the periodicmortality search result and the electronic verification step.
 21. Thecomputer-implemented system of claim 8, wherein the transmitconfiguration of the at least one tracking computer is furtherconfigured to transmit a deceased status notification to the beneficiaryof the life insurance policy based on the policyholder being deceasedaccording to the periodic and the aperiodic mortality search result. 22.The computer-implemented system of claim 8, wherein the aperiodicallyelectronically search configuration of the at least one trackingcomputer is further configured to aperiodically, automatically, andelectronically search at least some of the records of the one or moremortality databases for the unique identifier of the policyholder toobtain an aperiodic mortality search result, upon receipt of theaperiodic trigger.
 23. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,wherein the periodically and aperiodically electronically searchingsteps are performed by a single system.
 24. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 8, wherein the periodically and aperiodicallyelectronically search configurations are executed by a single system.